Coffee-chaff separator.



F. F. WEAR.

COFFEE :UHAPF SBPARATOR.

APPLICATION FILED Nov. so, 1910.

.Patented @en 10,1911.

[4 INVENOR www@ f K 26 By 27M,

ATTURNEV FRANK FQ WEAR, -OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

COFFEE-CHAFF SEPARATOR.

Specification ofLetters" Patent.

Patented Oct. 10, 1911.

Application filed November 30, 1910. Serial No. 594,985.

To alifwho'm it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK F. WEAR, a citizen of the United States, residing at San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in CoEee-Chal Separator-s, of which the followingl is a specification.

The present invention relates to kan irnproved coffee chal separator, the object of the invention being to provide a device of this kind which will be simple in construction, compact in form and effective in operation.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal sect-ion, certain parts'being shown in front elevation; Fig. 2 is a broken plan view thereof; Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail sectional view showing the form of said perforations.

base resting on suitable supports 2. Supported onsaid base are, atone end a blower casing 3, a motor casing 4 adjacent to said ressure chamber a ho er 5 and a suction fan casing 6 at the other end. In said casings 3 and 6 are respectively a blower 7 and a suction fan 8, both mounted upon the shaft 9 of the motor in said motor casing. The rear side 10 of the blower casing 3 is .formed with openings through which air is admitted to the blower 7. The air impelled Vby said blower escapes at the top of said blower casing into a conduit 12 vof which the upper side 13 forms the u per side of the apparatus, and the lower si e 14.is movably supportedby apertured ears 15, which can slide transversely of the chamber on stems 16. extending inwardly from the side walls 17 of the apparatus. Said bottom is caused to reciprocate transversely by means of a pinion 18 on the motor shaft 9, which meshes withv a gear wheel 20 on a stud shaft extending from the motor casing, on'which gear wheel is eccentrically mounted a pin 21 to which is loosely connected a link 22, pivotally connected to a hanger 23 depending rigidly from the movable lower side 14.

The ground coffee is deposited in a hopper 25 in the u per side 13 of the conduit and falls there rom into said conduit, in which, being in small articles, the column of coffee depending rom said hopper is broken by the blast of air from the pressure blower and is distributed through the conduit. The lower side 14 of the conduit outside of the apparatus.

slopes downward and extends partly over the hopper 5, and the art thus Vextending over said hopper is per orated, as shown at 26. On account of the downward slope of theside 14 and also of the pressure of the air from the blower, the coffee slowly descends over said lower side, this descent being assisted bythe constantagit-ation imparted to said coffee by the transversely reciprocating movement of said lowerside.

As it descends, the small particles ofthe broken coffee fall through the small perforations 26 into the hopper 5, while the large particles passv over the end of said lower side and t-hus -fall into the hop er. Said perforations 26 are downwardly aring in order to avoid being clogged up with the particles of coffee. The bottom of the hopper communicates with a box or' recepl tacle 27 for the coffee. The chaff isblown Referring to the drawmg, 1 indicates a` or the large pieces of through the small perforations. Said opening is adjusted by a suitable arm 35 on the On emerging from said outlet, lthe material is subjected to suction by the suction fan 8 which communicates by aconduit 30 with a suction chamber 31 inclosing said outlet 29. The suction created-by said fan isv sufficient to raise the chaff and convey it into said conduit 30, while unable to raise the larger particles of coie'e. The upper side of the conduit is provided with a window 32 through which the action of the apparatus can be observed so that the size of the outlet opening can be properly adjusted.

By the above construction I am .enabled to separate from the chai, not only the large particles, which are easily separated, but also the very ne particles-of codec. Thisl I accomplish by firstsubjecting the whole of the mixture to agitation, both by the reciprocating movement of the lower side of theV conduit and by the pressure of air from the pressure blower, wlule at the same time ad- ]usting the size ofthe outlet 29 so that the current of air from the blower is not sufciently strong to carry with the cha the fine particles of coffee. By causing the whole'bf the material thus agitated to pass over the perforated lower side of the conduit, I iirst eliminate from the mixture the fine particles of coffee, so that the mixture which emerges from the outlet 29 no longer contains any particles of coffee which could be carried up with the chaff by the suction of the suction fan. Upon said mixture so4 emerging at said outlet, the chaff is easily separated from the larger particles, which fall into the hopper and are mixed with the remainder of the coifee which has previously passed through said perforations 26.

I claim l. The combination of a conduit, the lower side of the -conduit sloping downward and having perforations, means for supplying ground coffee to said conduit, a hopper into which said perforations discharge, means for agitatin said lower side, al blower for blowing air 1nto the upper end of Said conduit, means for adjusting the outlet at the lower end of said conduit, said lower end discharging into said hopper, a suction chamber inclosing said outlet, a suction fan, and a conduit leading from said suction chamber to said suction fan, substantially as described.

2. The combination of a base, a blower casing mounted at one end of said base, a suction fan casing mounted at the other end, a motor casing mounted on said base, a

'motor therein, a hopper mounted on said base, a blower and a suction fan respectively in said casings, and mounted on the shaft ot' said motor, a conduit above said hopper having a downwardly sloping perforated lower side, said perfor-ations discharging into said hopper, the upper end of saidV conduit being connected to said blower casing and the lower end communicating with said suction casing, said lower end also discharging into said hopper, means for adjusting the`out1ct at the lower end of said conduit, and means actuated by said motor for agitatin the lower side of the conduit, substantial y as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FRANK F. WEAR.

Witnesses: i

FRANCIS A. WRIGHT, D. B. RICHARDS. 

